29 June 2021 | Tennis Queensland

Queenslanders are being encouraged to don their Wimbledon whites on July 8 to celebrate Rod Laver Day.

The day honours Queensland’s most successful tennis player and coincides with the 60^th anniversary of Rod Laver’s first Wimbledon title.

Clubs, tournaments and even players on home courts will follow Wimbledon’s dress code by wearing only white tennis clothes on the day.

A brand new cabinet containing some of Laver’s prized trophies will be unveiled in his birth city of Rockhampton, whilst competitors at the Rod Laver Junior Championships at the Queensland Tennis Centre will write special postcard messages to be sent to Laver’s United States home.

Queenslanders are also being asked to dig out their wooden racquets to share their best wooden racquet rally on social media using the hashtag #RodLaverDay.

Laver, born in Rockhampton in 1938, won 11 Grand Slam singles titles and nine Grand Slam doubles titles, spanning a 24 year career as an amateur and professional player.

Known widely as the ‘Rocket’, he was ranked world No. 1 in nine different years, which is an all-time record in tennis. He is the only player to win all four grand slams in the same calendar year twice.

Laver was inducted as a Legend of Australian Sport in 2002 and was formally announced as an Australian Living Treasure. He was also inducted into the Queensland Sport Hall of Fame in 2009.

Centre Court at Melbourne Park is named in his honour Rod Laver Arena and a footbridge in Brisbane, connecting the Yeerongpilly rail station to the Queensland Tennis Centre, also bears his name.

Wimbledon 2021 will also mark the 50th anniversary of Queensland based Evonne Goolagong Cawley’s first title at the All England Club.

Goolagong Cawley defeated fellow Aussie Margaret Court 6-4 6-1 to claim her second consecutive Grand Slam title at the age of just 19.

World no.1, Ashleigh Barty will wear a dress inspired by Goolagong Cawley’s iconic scallop dress worn during her title winning campaign in 1971.